faith + creativity + collaborative leadership

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amps

mojotone jtm45 clone (“moby”)

This has been my main amp for about 2 years now. I’ve wanted a JTM45 head for years, “just because.” When I finally found this thing on eBay, I jumped on it. It’s white, and it rages: hence the nickname. The thing I love about this amp is the way it reacts to fuzz pedals; it just sounds right to me (it helps that it also shakes the ground). I jump the channels, and also run an attenuator to make it “Jesus friendly”.

matchless SC-30

SOMEHOW I got this amp from my brother-in-law, and it is everything that you’ve ever read about Matchless amps: unbelievable, three-dimensional, complex tone, and heavy as crap. It is simply a jem of an amp, but I don’t take it out as much as I used to. I’ve always had a beef with EL84-equipped amps and the way they interact with drive pedals, particularly fuzz.

fender deluxe reissue

This is essentially my practice amp, though I also take it out for small gigs. Out of the box these amps are really harsh-sounding, but I’m slowly modding mine to sweeten the tone (start by having your tech snip the bright cap, and you’ll be off and running).

guitars

1998 Fender 52 Tele Reissue

2010 Fender Joe Strummer Tribute Tele

1994 Fender American Standard Strat

2009 Fender Roadworn Strat (Sunburst)

2010 Fender Roadworn Strat (White)

1991 Gibson 335 Studio

1992 Gibson Les Paul Standard

2005 Gretsch 6120

1970s Gretsch BST

2006 Taylor GS Acoustic

pedals

I’ve been paring down my board for a year or two now, mainly as a result of some of the stuff I’ve been listening to. This is where things are at for now: Voodoo Labs Microvibe –> AnalogMan Sunface (High Gain NKT) –> Analog Man Beano Boost –> Xotic AC Boost –> Fulltone SupaTrem –> MXR Carbon Copy –> TU2 (Sometimes I slap a Crybaby 535q in front, and the Fulltone ’69 Pedal occasionally replaces the Sunface.)

Other toys that sometimes make appearances include a Greer Ghetto Stomp and the ZVex Fuzz Factory.

misc

Slides. I use a few different slides, depending on my mood: a Dunlop Coricidin reissue (mostly this one; gotta love that Allman vibe), a Dunlop brass “Harris” slide (heavy and concave to maintain constant contact with all strings), and a Dunlop tapered glass slide. When I really need to up the mojo, I’ll bust out an actual bottle neck: it’s hardly functional but it makes me feel really, really cool. P.S.: Always and only pick with fingers when I play slide.

Strings. I string my electrics up most of the time with D’Addario 11s; I like the extra fight that they give. The Gretsch gets GHS 12s, and the Taylor gets D’Addario Phosphor Bronze 12s.

Picks. Dunlop Tortex, “Red” and “Orange” depending on how much I want to dig in (I keep a supply of four different gauges in case I need something different for a particular song).